Search for Clues In Nicole Hoar Disappearance Set

Thursday, May 03, 2007 03:59 AM

A private investigator plans to launch a search of the Norman Lake area, west of Prince George, on Saturday May 12th looking for evidence in the disappearance of Nicole Hoar.

Nicole disappeared in June of 2002. The 25 year old from Red Deer had come to Prince George to work as a tree planter and disappeared when hitchhiking to Smithers to visit friends.

Ray Michalko has been in the region before and says the same information has surfaced over and over again. When he spoke with Opinion250 in June of 2006 he said "There are a lot of people missing over a small stretch of highway. It is unlikely that such a large number of victims were killed by different people, and it does seem that one or two of the disappearances may be related.”

He initially started his Highway of Tears investigation by running an advertisement with media in Smithers and Terrace. He received about 50 phone calls and emails with tips and leads on the disappearances of women along Highway 16.

The RCMP in Prince George know about Michalko's plans and have not been asked by Michalko to take part in the May 12th search. The RCMP in Prince George have gone on record as welcoming his work saying it gives them another set of eyes and ears in the field.

There are some in the Prince George community who are raising questions about Michalko's efforts. If he is, as he says, getting positive leads on this case and others in the Highway of Tears murders and disappearances, they ask why has he not turned that information over to the investigating team? Michalko has been working on the Highway of Tears file for about a year and has yet to deliver any leads or information to investigators.

There is a team of RCMP investigators in the lower mainland working on the Highway of Tears file. Once all the details of each of the eleven cases have been entered in a central data base, they will start analyzing the information to see if there are similiarities.

Anyone interested in taking part should be at the Highway 16 and Norman Lake Road turnoff at 9 a.m. May 12th

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Posted on Thursday, May 03, 2007 03:59 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: metalman on May 3 2007 8:07 AM

Best of luck. I hope they find her. Moreover, may they piece together enough clues to catch the sicko(s) who are responsible.
metalman.

Posted by: whynotyou on May 3 2007 9:28 AM

I wonder.....if the area is hiding something, will someone show up to see what happens?

Posted by: Andyfreeze on May 3 2007 9:33 AM

It would be much needed peace of mind for the family if they did in fact find her,but I wonder why they think that she may be in that specific area?
Would it not make sense that whoever picked her up would leave the area with her?
Still,I guess it is best to check everywhere.Can't even begin to imagine how difficult this must be for the family.
My condolences.

Posted by: snappi on May 3 2007 3:31 PM

My heart goes out to the Hoar family as well as the other families that have experienced such tragedies. I certainly hope that one day they can have some peace by discovering the whereabouts of their daughters. I'm not sure that a preditor would necessarily leave the area. My thoughts on that would be that the pervert would want to complete his agenda and get rid of the evidence quickly. Just my thoughts. I sure wish them luck. My sympathy's.

Posted by: Chadermando on May 3 2007 4:21 PM

My thoughts on that location are that it is heavily used by dirt bikers, and ATV'ers throughout the summer months ripping up dirt in all the little ravings, crooks, and crannies of the area. On the weekends there can be as many as 20 riders out there at any one time. I would be surprised if nobody has come across something in those parts over the last 5 years. That said if he has a lead then its worth a look, because there is a lot of access trails in those parts where a person could hide.

That said again I don't like the term 'Highway of Tears' I think it creates a negative perception of this geographical region for the tourism operators. Chances are if there is a killer on the lose it is a transient that is opportunistic and not geographically constrained. I would much rather they came up with a term that describes the behaviour commonalities instead. Maybe Hitchhiking Tears, or Missing Women of High Risk, or something that better identifies the circumstances surrounding these cases. Limiting it to a pox on Highway 16 seems to be a disservice to all those who do not fit that category as well as ignoring the commonalities that could tie it in with other missing women cases in other regions who also deserve to have their plight highlighted for some closure.

Posted by: thereasonableman on May 4 2007 3:27 AM

My sympathy to the families.

I think Michalko is "stunting".

I think the disappearances are mostly unrelated with a couple of possible exceptions.

I think the main reason for the high incidence of female disappearances in the area is: the high incidence of female hitch-hikers along the route, especially at very odd hours of the night, coupled with often some type of substance-induced impairment.

It puts any person at a significantly higher risk than would otherwise be, and would dictate that by the law of averages, opportunities for trouble are more likely to happen, and happen more often.